Media Room

03/2026

On course for success with the "Home of Experts": SPORT 2000 Group International is developing more dynamically than the market

SPORT 2000 Group International looks back on a successful 2025 financial year. With gross retail sales of €5.3 billion, the international retail service organisation achieved like-for-like growth of 8.2 per cent compared to 2024, significantly outperforming the market. This development is driven by the consistent implementation of the international „Home of Experts” positioning, successful retail formats and close coordination between international strategy and national market expertise.

SPORT 2000 Group International continues its growth course and closes the 2025 financial year with gross retail sales of €5.3 billion, an increase of 8.2 per cent over the previous year. The international retail service organisation is thus growing significantly faster than the market, underlining the effectiveness of its strategic orientation. Internationally, the retail service organisation currently connects around 2,000 retailers with almost 3,000 stores in 17 countries to form a strong network. "Our above-market performance confirms the strength of our Home of Experts strategy," says Margit Gosau, CEO of SPORT 2000 Group International. With this strategy, SPORT 2000 Group International is deliberately focusing on specialisation, expertise and clear profiling in the market. The SPORT 2000 multi-category retailer format (MCR) and the specialised retail formats ABSOLUTE RUN and ABSOLUTE TEAMSPORT form the central pillars of this strategy. "Specialisation creates a profile, strengthens our expertise in the market and enables our country organisations and their retailers to clearly differentiate themselves. The combination of expertise, personal advice and proximity to the community is what makes the focused and specialised sports retail trade so strong," emphasises Gosau, adding: "More than a third of our stores are already specialist shops and many multi-category retailers are opting for focus. This is a clear sign of the development of our network towards specialisation and profiling."

New licensing structure accelerates expansion
By decoupling the licence structures for the international SPORT 2000 and ABSOLUTE formats, SPORT 2000 Group International is strengthening its international format strategy and gaining significant flexibility in its expansion. Retail formats are no longer tied to a single licence structure per country. Instead, different licensees within a market can specifically implement the retail format that suits their expertise and respective potential. "International expansion does not follow a one-size-fits-all principle. Our modular format strategy makes it possible to focus on multi-category or clear specialisation, depending on the market and partner," says Gosau. This structure facilitates international rollout and creates the basis for establishing different retail formats more quickly in new markets. At the same time, SPORT 2000 Group International is working with its national organisations to develop further specialist formats for high-growth segments, thereby consistently strengthening its positioning as the "Home of Experts".

Outdoor and running drive growth
Outdoor will become the strongest growth driver within SPORT 2000 Group International in 2025, accounting for 26 per cent of total category sales. While the outdoor market as a whole is developing largely steadily, the segment is growing at an above-average rate, particularly in Germany. The acquisition of large, prominent outdoor retailers is particularly strengthening this development. Running is also showing dynamic growth in almost all markets and accounts for 11 per cent of total volume. Running has been the clear growth winner over the last two years. The market is booming thanks to the development of new, younger target groups and is benefiting in particular from the clear positioning of Running Experts retailers and the specialised ABSOLUTE RUN format. Sportstyle contributes 15 per cent to total sales and, after a particularly strong previous year with 23 per cent, is now back at a balanced level in the category mix. Team sports account for 13 per cent of sales and remain stable even without global football events in 2025. Winter sports are also developing very positively, accounting for 11 per cent, benefiting from a successful winter season with high booking numbers and good snow conditions in Europe. The alpine skiing sector is particularly dynamic, with medium to high double-digit growth rates. Fitness and training remain slightly above the previous year's level and grow to a 10 per cent share of total sales, while biking holds a 5 per cent share. Other categories, including racket sports, fun sports and other sports, contribute 8 per cent to the total volume. Swimming accounts for 1 per cent. "The development in categories such as outdoor and running clearly shows where the sports market is heading. This is exactly where we come in with our strategic orientation and the strength of our network," says Gosau.

From Europe to the world: expansion on a global course
SPORT 2000 Group International is clearly focusing its growth strategy on global expansion. Although the retail service organisation is anchored in Europe, its international presence is increasingly developing beyond the continent. With its market entry in Poland, SPORT 2000 Group International is continuing this course in a targeted manner. Together with the Savio Group, a national SPORT 2000 organisation is being established there to drive forward the rollout of the brand in one of Europe's most dynamic sports markets. At the same time, SPORT 2000 Group International is working on further market development. In addition to Europe, the focus of international expansion is particularly on markets in the EMEA region and selected countries in South America. "We are rooted in Europe, but we think globally when it comes to our expansion. Our aim is to open up new markets together with strong regional partners and to further expand SPORT 2000 Group International as the leading retail service organisation in the specialist sports retail sector worldwide," says Gosau, who is delighted with the great interest shown from many parts of the world.